Memorial Day 2011

We spent (7 hours celebrating) Memorial Day with the Hoffman girls this year.

Savannah had a blast with so many other friends to play with - and all four of the Hoffman girls were all so gracious to let Savannah hoard their water bombs the entire time.

And I didn't get a picture of it, but I made this fun cake (thanks Babble!) to complement the Memorial Day waffles courtesy of 10 year old Rachelle to celebrate:

Red, White and Blue Flag Cake

for the sour cream lemon cake
3/4 cup sour cream
4 eggs
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
pinch salt
zest of 1 lemon
3/4 cup canola oil

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.Grease a 9 x 13” glass baking dish and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the sour cream, eggs, and sugar. Stir in the flour and baking powder, salt, and zest, mixing just until combined. Add the oil, and fold in until the batter is smooth.

Pour into the baking dish and bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The top will be a very light golden brown. Set aside and allow the cake to cool completely.

for the cream cheese frosting
1 8 oz. package Neufchatel or cream cheese, room temperature
4 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Using a beater, or the paddle attachment in your stand mixer, whip together the cream cheese and butter. Add in the powdered sugar and lemon juice. When the batter is smooth, and the vanilla and beat a few seconds more.

to assemble the cake

Once the cake is completely cooled, frost it directly in the dish. Add rows of whole blueberries for the stars, and rows of overlapping sliced strawberries for the stripes. Keep covered in the refrigerator until ready to serve.